Experts for Leasehold Conveyancing in Sandy

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Leasehold conveyancing in Sandy is more complex than freehold. Your home move will be smoother where you choose a lawyer with a wealth of experience of leasehold conveyancing in Sandy and throughout next step up in loc. The lawyers we recommend have been approved by your lender so use our search tool to check.

Common questions relating to Sandy leasehold conveyancing

I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Sandy. Before I get started I want to be sure as to the number of years remaining on the lease.

If the lease is recorded at the land registry - and most are in Sandy - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title.For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.

Helen (my wife) and I may need to rent out our Sandy ground floor flat for a while due to taking a sabbatical. We instructed a Sandy conveyancing firm in 2001 but they have closed and we did not have the foresight to get any advice as to whether the lease prohibits the subletting of the flat. How do we find out?

Some leases for properties in Sandy do contain a provision to say that subletting is only allowed with permission. The landlord cannot unreasonably withhold but, in such cases, they would need to see references. Experience suggests that problems are usually caused by unsatisfactory tenants rather than owner-occupiers and for that reason you can expect the freeholder to take up the references and consider them carefully before granting permission.

I am tempted by the attractive purchase price for a couple of maisonettes in Sandy both have in the region of 50 years unexpired on the lease term. Do I need to be concerned?

There is no doubt about it. A leasehold apartment in Sandy is a deteriorating asset as a result of the shortening lease. The closer the lease gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the marketability of the property. For most purchasers and lenders, leases with under 75 years become less and less attractive. On a more positive note, leaseholders can extend their leases by serving a Section 42 Notice. One stipulation is that they must have owned the property for two years (unlike a Section 13 notice for purchasing the freehold, when leaseholders can participate from day one of ownership). When successful, they will have the right to an extension of 90 years to the current term and ground rent is effectively reduced to zero. Before moving forward with a purchase of a residence with a short lease term remaining you should talk to a solicitor specialising in lease extensions and leasehold enfranchisement. We are are happy to put you in touch with Sandy conveyancing experts who will explain the options available to you during an initial telephone conversation free of charge. A more straightforward and quicker method of extending would be to contact your landlord directly and sound him out on the prospect of extending the lease You may find he or she is happy to negotiate informally and willing to consider your offer straight off, without having to involve anyone else. This will save you time and money and it could help you reach a lower price on the lease. You need to ensure that any new terms represent good long-term value compared with the standard benefits of the Section 42 Notice and that onerous clauses are not inserted into any redrafting of the lease.

I am employed by a long established estate agent office in Sandy where we have experienced a few leasehold sales put at risk as a result of leases having less than 80 years remaining. I have received inconsistent advice from local Sandy conveyancing solicitors. Can you clarify whether the owner of a flat can commence the lease extension process for the purchaser on completion of the sale?

Provided that the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer can avoid having to wait 2 years to extend their lease. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment needs to be completed prior to, or at the same time as completion of the sale.

Alternatively, it may be possible to agree the lease extension with the freeholder either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the buyer.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Sandy with the intention of speeding up the sale process?

  • Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Sandy can be reduced where you get in touch lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and ask them to put together the leasehold documentation needed by the purchasers’ solicitors.
  • In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Sandy state that internal structural changes or installing wooden flooring necessitate a licence issued by the Landlord consenting to such works. If you fail to have the consents to hand do not contact the landlord without contacting your lawyer in advance.
  • A minority of Sandy leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this is the case, you should notify your estate agents to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. Any bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is able to meet the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
  • If you have had any disputes with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved prior to the flat being put on the market. The buyers and their solicitors will be nervous about purchasing a property where a dispute is unresolved. You will have to accept that you will have to pay any arrears of service charge or resolve the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled ahead of the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is better to present the dispute as over rather than ongoing.
  • You believe that you know the number of years remaining on your lease but it would be wise to verify this via your conveyancers. A buyer’s lawyer will be unlikely to recommend their client to proceed with the purchase of a leasehold property the lease term is less than 80 years. It is therefore important at an early stage that you consider whether the lease requires a lease extension. If it does, contact your solicitors before you put your property on the market for sale.

    • Leasehold Conveyancing in Sandy - A selection of Queries before Purchasing

      In the main the cost for major works are not included within maintenance charges, albeit that some managing agents in Sandy ask leaseholders to pay into a reserve fund and this is used to offset against larger repairs or maintenance. Best to be warned if a new roof is being installed or some other major work is pending that will be shared amongst the tenants and may well materially impact the level of the maintenance fees or result in a specific payment. Please note that where the lease has fewer than 80 years it will have adverse implications on the marketability of the apartment. Check with your lender that they are content with residual term of the lease. A short lease means that you will most likely need a lease extension at some point and you need to have some idea of what this will be. Remember, in most cases you would be be obliged to have been the owner of the premises for two years before you are entitled to extend the lease.

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    Lease Extensions in Sandy